Cloud isn’t used to feeling things. He doesn’t like the weird uncomfortable pit in his stomach or the fact that he can’t identify it. He doesn’t like that he knew you first, grew up with you in Nibelheim, and when he finally saw you again, learned that you were dating someone else now.

There’s a ring on your finger; just a promise ring, you’d said, but he knows it’s just a precursor to something bigger. You’re basically completely untouchable to him now, and he hates it.

When Cloud studies you in the undercity train hurtling towards Avalanche’s next destination, his chest tightens, and for the first time in a while, he feels uneasy. He’s always been the type to keep everything in check, to push aside anything that might get in the way of the job, but now, with you beside him, the lines are blurring. “Isn’t it too early to get married?” Cloud asks brusquely, his voice sharp, as if the question itself is a mere formality.